3. Coffee Contains Health-Protective Compounds

Caffeic acid is a hydroxycinnamic acid – a kind of plant chemical believed to have health-protective properties. It is one of the most concentrated polyphenols in coffee, and you can read more about its chemical structure here.

Furthermore, recent studies on both compounds demonstrate some interesting benefits too. These beneficial features include enhancing the immune system of asthmatic children and protecting the liver from toxicity in animal studies (9, 10).

Additionally, clinical trials are investigating the compound as a possible treatment for esophageal cancer (11).

Despite this, we shouldn’t read too much into these potential benefits just yet.

For one thing, we have to bear in mind that these studies use more of the compound than what naturally occurs in coffee.

Key Point: The caffeic acid content is another potential health benefit of drinking coffee. Current understanding suggests this polyphenol has a range of health-protective properties.

4. Coffee Consumption Lowers the Risk of Melanoma Skin Cancer

While many skin cancers are relatively mild in nature, melanoma is the exception.

This skin cancer is often fatal, and prevalence rates are quickly rising across the world.

In fact, the data is disturbing and shows a 500% increase in the number of cases over the last four decades;

A systematic review of cohort studies—featuring over 1,247,387 participants—found that higher habitual coffee consumption is associated with a lower risk of type 2 diabetes (24).

A further systematic review was undertaken that looked at studies between 1966 and 2013. Markedly, there was a clear and consistent inverse association between coffee and type 2 diabetes in a dose-dependent manner (25).

However, don’t think of coffee (or any food) as a magic bullet.

While coffee may offer some benefit, the best way to avoid type 2 diabetes is a good diet, exercise program, and adequate sleep.

Key Point: A reduced risk of type 2 diabetes appears to be another health benefit of drinking coffee. Note: this means black coffee, not lattes or sweet-flavored drinks.

8. Caffeine Has Various Health Benefits Too

While coffee contains many different compounds, some of the health benefits relate to one in particular — caffeine.

As well as being a useful tool for focus and alertness, research shows various advantages that caffeine provides;

A review of the existing evidence suggests that caffeinated coffee consumption lowers the risk of Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and cardiovascular disease (27).

A broad systematic review of caffeine intake and potential adverse outcomes was undertaken in 2017. This particular study showed that while there are benefits, there are no adverse health effects at consumption levels of up to 400 mg per day. This figure translates to approximately four cups of coffee (28).

To sum up, caffeine appears to have various positive impacts on our body.

However, some negative effects start to appear when we consume more than 400 mg – these effects become more prevalent in a dose-dependent manner.

Key Point: In moderate amounts, caffeine helps improve concentration and lowers the risk of several chronic diseases. On the other hand, just like most things – excessive amounts can be harmful.

9. Coffee May Protect Against Liver Damage

Some more positive effects of drinking coffee include its potential hepatoprotective properties.

First of all, “hepatoprotective” is a word that means something can prevent liver damage.

As a result, discussions have suggested coffee as having a potential role in the treatment of chronic liver diseases, including non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) – a condition which processed food fuels, and it is rapidly rising in prevalence.

For instance, high-level evidence from recent studies show that;

In a systematic review, evidence suggests that coffee consumption may protect the liver from damage in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and lower the risk of metabolic syndrome (29).

A systematic review examined coffee consumption and liver diseases. This review found that coffee consistently improves lab readings, reduces mortality, and improves overall survival. The authors state that for those with liver diseases, physicians should encourage daily coffee consumption (30).

Key Point: Coffee has various hepatoprotective properties, and regular consumption improves a wide range of symptoms relating to liver diseases.

10. Longevity Studies Show Coffee May Help You Live Longer

An increasing number of studies show coffee has an association with increased longevity.

A delicious drink that makes you feel better and live longer? It sounds too good to be true, and again – correlation does not equal causation.

However, research shows that there is an association between coffee consumption and lower mortality.

Two of the biggest ever studies were recent multi-national and multi-ethnic cohort studies involving over 700,000 participants.

Significantly, these two studies showed that;

Among 185,555 participants of multiple ethnicities, higher coffee consumption—both caffeinated and non-caffeinated—was associated with a statistically significant lower risk of death (32).

In 521,330 participants from 10 different countries, those in the highest quartile of coffee consumption had statistically lower all-cause mortality. The relationship was consistent and did not vary by country (33).

These impressive results are likely due to the health-protective bioactive compounds that coffee contains.

Key Point: Improved longevity could be the biggest health benefit of drinking coffee. We should never assume association equals causation, but there are strong associations between coffee and a lower risk of mortality.

11. Coffee is Associated With a Reduced Risk of Cardiovascular Disease

Is coffee good for your heart?

The research on coffee and heart-health hasn’t always been consistent. However, there has never been any evidence of harm in otherwise healthy people.

On the contrary, the Framingham Heart Study found that caffeinated coffee consumption is associated with a lower risk of CVD mortality and disease progression in the elderly (34).

In recent years, accumulating research suggests that coffee likely exerts several health benefits relating to heart health.

Specifically, extensive systematic reviews show that;

In an analysis of 36 studies involving 1,279,804 participants, those drinking 3 to 5 cups per day had the lowest CVD risk (35).

Another review found that—in moderate doses of up to 4 cups oer day—coffee is safe and likely holds a benefit in reducing CVD mortality (36).

A further meta-analysis of 21 studies featuring 997,464 participants also shows promise. In particular, the research shows that coffee consumption has a cler inverse relationship with cardiovascular mortality (37).

However, more coffee isn’t necessarily better. For instance, there appears to be a ‘U’ shaped curve with coffee’s protective benefits.

A few cups appear to benefit heart health, but increasing consumption over 4-5 cups per day may have an adverse outcome.

Key Point: Does coffee help keep our teeth and gums healthy? Possibly, but avoiding sugary food and drinks should always come first for dental health.

14. Caffeine Boosts Physical Performance

Coffee’s energy-giving properties are widely known, and they come down to the caffeine content of the drink.

On this note, coffee can play a role in improving physical sporting and exercise performance.

For one thing, studies show that drinking coffee before a workout can help enhance recovery, increase resistance training load, and boost our metabolic rate (43, 44, 45).

Also, a systematic review of 21 studies investigated these claims in relation to endurance athletes (46).

The researchers found that caffeine ingestion of approximately 3-6 mg per kilogram of bodyweight had performance-boosting effects.

To put it another way, the amount of caffeine to benefit a 70 kg individual would be somewhere between 210 and 420 mg. In real-world terms, this is equivalent to one or two Starbucks grande size coffees.

These benefits were variable between different studies, with performance improvements being somewhere between 0.3 and 17%.

A meta-analysis of 40 prospective cohort studies found no negative effect from coffee. However, the study did find that coffee lowers the risk of bladder, breast, pancreatic, and prostate cancer among others (49).

However, this inverse relationship doesn’t show for all types of cancer.

For instance, a recent systematic review investigated coffee’s impact on colorectal cancer incidence. In this study, the evidence was insufficient to support that drinking coffee increases or decreases risk (50).

Key Point: There is reasonably strong evidence to suggest that coffee may help lower the risk of some cancers.

How Many Cups of Coffee Should You Drink Per Day?

If you tolerate coffee well, then the sweet spot appears to be somewhere in the 3-4 cups per day range.

Like with most things in nutrition, we are all unique as individuals, so go with whatever seems to work the best for you.

Overall, there’s every reason to suggest that a daily coffee has several positive health benefits.